Let’s look at each other and Onades: when culture is born from the neighborhood
Article published in Poblenou magazine
/Photography: Àngel Garcia and Albert Masias
La Montse has lived in Poblenou all her life. In fact, he is the fifth generation of his family to live in the neighborhood. And now, for more than a month, his portrait has been displayed on the facade of the Carulla Foundation, along with those of other neighbors. In total, close to a hundred Pueblonovins have been photographed and twelve of these portraits can still be seen in the Foundation building. But what is behind this display? Why have the images of dozens of residents been photographed and exhibited? The portraits on the facade are part of the work ofAlbert Masiasone of the winners of the Gent del Barrio scholarships from the Carulla Foundation. Both he and the scenic laboratory LabOriosathe other grant project, have been the main drivers of a community cultural initiative that, for half a year, has worked to highlight the diversity and richness of Poblenou; a collective impulse with the aim of placing the person at the center of cultural creation.
with let’s look at each otherMasias intended to reflect on the power of mutual recognition between the inhabitants of the neighborhood. Exposing portraits of anonymous neighbors is, on the one hand, a way of empowering them; it makes evident his value as a member of a community. On the other hand, however, it opens a dialogue with the viewer. The work invites us to be part of a network of views where we can recognize ourselves as part of a whole. Masias claims, thus, the importance of community experience, especially in a city like ours, where getting to know each other is increasingly difficult.
Anna López and Triana Docefrom LabOriosa, presented the play waves. This project was built through the testimonies of Poblenou residents themselves. With his memoirs, the script of a performative work was woven specific site which premiered on the terrace of the Carulla Foundation last October 20. Attendees navigated through the neighborhood’s collective emotions; an experience originated and starred by the Poblenovins. The reception of the work has been enormously positive and has contributed to strengthening the sense of community in the neighborhood: “at almost eighty-four years old I have shared a new experience”, explains one of the neighbors involved in the project.
Poblenou is a neighborhood with a long history. With roots in the labor movement, it has always been associated with a very rich neighborhood life. However, and especially since the 1992 Olympic Games, Poblenou is experiencing a great process of social and urban transformation, with changes that do not always favor its inhabitants. Neighborhood associations have never stopped organizing to deal with this situation. But the fight must also be done from social and cultural organizations.
The Carulla Foundation set up its headquarters in Poblenou at the end of last year. From the beginning, it avoided being just another organization in the 22@: the intention was to become a node in the cultural network of the neighborhood’s residents. “This space (…) must belong to the people and for the people; because we don’t understand culture if it’s not with and from the people of the neighborhood”says Marta Esteve, director general of the Foundation. It is in the search for this social involvement that the Neighborhood People Grants were born, grants with the aim of promoting projects that directly involve the neighborhood community in their development and exhibition. Let’s look and Onades embody the fundamental pillars of the Carulla Foundation: that culture has a high potential to transform society, but that this transformation is more effective when the person is at the center of the action.
